Keep Holding On
by Jade Opal
Summary: The last of a long forgotten group, known as the Guardians, finds herself journeying with Eragon as she comes into terms of her duties. But will her fate be sealed in the light, or fall into the darkness foretold to her? MurtaghOC. IN HIATUS for now.
1. The Prophecy

**Disclaimers: Ok, I think that by now, you guys have seen enough disclaimers in most of the fics that you have read. Well, to make things seem good on both parties, I have to annouce my disclaimer in this fic. But, I'm only doing it once, so I'll refer to this in my future chapters. I do not own Eragon or Murtagh. Sadly enough, I only own Adriel/Cassandra in this story and in this chapter. Feel free to leave a review at the end of this chapter. -Jade Opal-**

Walking inside the small hut by way of the beaded curtain as means of the door, I come across a very intriguing room: there were candles, strings of beads, jewels and bell all over the room, bones, skulls of various animals, and jars of different herbs and unknown things scattered strategically on a few shelves and small tables. I walk over to a particular table where sat a crystal ball inside a dragon's belly. I was so engrossed with the crystal ball that I did not notice a woman with grey hair dressed in mythical clothing had walked in from a back room. Only when she cleared her throat was I aware of her presence.

She had green eyes that seemed to look deep into my very soul. It wasn't until she spoke that I realized that she was asking if I wanted my fortune to be told.

"I do not have any means of funds-" I replied back, finding my voice for the first time since I arrived in town.  
"Did Angela ask for money?" the woman asked as she sat down at the table to my left. "Dragon bones...most accurate when telling fortunes," she said as she held up a few small bones the size of Tootsie Rolls in her hand.

I am curious as to what these bones have in store for my future, yet I am curious about why bones from a magnificent creature would be used for this particular telling. I turn to face the woman. I was, probably, eager to see what she was able to see by these calcium-fortified minerals of hollow bones.

When I looked up at the woman, I noticed that her verdant green eyes were clouded over by a white film and that the air all around me is starting to get a bit cooler than before.

"Your future is an interesting one, Adriel of the Dröttningu house. Influenced by both the light and the darkness, yet you lean towards the grasp of the light. Your powers are not strong enough alone to defeat the darkness...you will be tempted into the darkness, though. Keep your heart true and steadfast to the light.

"You will be favored by the son of Morzan. Your love for him will determine the course you need to take as you journey onto defeating the darkness. Only then, will you be able to unlock your true potential in beating the darkness.

"Remember these words, as they will shape a part of your destiny...and the fate of the Dragon Riders," Angela spoke in an eerie voice.

Five minutes later, I found myself outside of Angela's hut. I was still confused by what the bones told the fortune teller. I shake my head as I make my way to the edge of town before venturing out into the unknown. Little did I know that I would return to the same hut, to the same fortune teller, to hear my fortune again in my mind five years down the road...but in that time, I would grow cautious to the man that I would love in return.

**A/N: This was an inspiration to an assignment that I had to do for my creative writing class in college. I'm still in college, but this was for last semester. So, I hope you guys continue to read more on what happens next in 'Keep Holding On'. **


	2. The Calm before the Storm

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter 1 for proper disclaimer.**

**A/N: Wow, another chapter posting! This only happens when I'm bored, or I have time on my hands...which is both in this case. Enjoy reading this chapter!**

The air in the small village was a bit nippy from the early morning frost as fall crept into town. People, in the early hours of the morning, were getting ready for the day's profits and sales. The families were hustling to get ready for the day's work that needed to be done before winter settled in. Everyone wasn't expecting anything huge to happen...it never has for the past five centuries.

On the outskirts of the small, yet lively village stood a hut. In the hut were two occupants: a middle-aged man that looked agile and fit like he did in the days of old and a younger lad that could be mistaken for a maiden...which she was. Brom was busy getting breakfast ready for the two of them as his younger looking companion slept. He would, at times, glance over to see if she was still asleep.

When he did for the tenth time, he saw that she was waking slowly. Her short, dark brown hair was a bit messy, but suited for her disguise. Her lavender eyes stared back at his steel grey eyes. The two had shared that kind of connection that would speak unspoken words that they alone knew about. She rubbed a tanned hand over her sleepy eyes to rid the sleep in them.

"What time is it?" the younger companion asked in a husky voice, her voice still hoarse from lack of water.  
"It is nearly dawn...you need to get up if you wish to get some food for tonight and some firewood, Adriel," Brom said with laughter in his eyes as he stood up and brushed back her hair from her eyes.

The girl merely grunted as she sat up on the makeshift bed. She stretched out her arms above her head, lifting her shirt a bit to reveal a slightly visible scar near her right hipbone. Brom looked away, hiding a shudder from the girl.

"I saw that," she said as she yawned.  
"Saw what, Adriel? I did not see anything," Brom said.  
"You saw IT, didn't you? For the Varden's sake, don't worry about it. It's been years since it happened-"  
"And I still wonder when you will forget that I did not see it..."  
"Brom."  
"Adriel," Brom said as he turned to looked at his companion.

By now, she had swung her legs over to one side and had her bare feet on the floor. She had on a loose tunic, which showed her bounded chest and a couple of scratches on her shoulders and near her collar bone. The breeches hugged her legs comfortably, though it too has seen better days.

"You need to stop worrying...I'm pretty sure that there's nothing that would harm me at this point...I've been there, done that, and seen my share of what's been going on lately that I could evade it quicker than I did before."

Brom nodded his head.

"All right...come and have breakfast."

Cassandra ran a hand through her hair to reveal two pointed ears, which quickly faded back into the depths of her short hair. As she lowered her hand, she glanced upon the phoenix mark on her right hand that was near her thumb. She shook her head sadly as she got to her feet, standing at 5'3" and making her way to where Brom was now seated to eat the first meal of the day.


	3. Preparing for the Storm pt 1

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter 1 for proper disclaimer.**

Cassandra was just about to head back to where Brom's hut was when she stopped and saw Eragon and his cousin, Roran, talking; Katrina was standing next to Roran. It seemed that Roran was about to leave town with Katrina; a pack was behind his back and he looked set with a determined face. She could only watch as the older boy of the two left, walking to wherever his destiny lied. Eragon, meanwhile, walked to the edge of town, closest to where Cassandra stood. The younger boy stopped upon seeing the girl and smiled.

"You seem to be down...what's the matter, Eragon?" Cassandra asked.  
"It's just-I don't understand why Roran had to leave," Eragon said with a sigh.  
"He did what he thought was right, Eragon. There's nothing you could have done. Trust me when I say that you will see him soon. And, I'm pretty sure that your uncle will be happy to see to that as well."  
"I hope so."  
"Come now, Eragon. I may look like I'm younger than you, but I am not a fool at what I see," Cassandra jested as she laughed a little.  
"Right...I'll remember that," Eragon said as he started to walk away.  
"And I'm sure you will."

Before Cassandra left town, she noticed Katrina's father looking for Eragon. He was about to shout out to the boy when the girl interceded.

"Oh, leave the lad alone," Cassandra said. "He didn't cause a ruckus as of late."  
"Aye, but it's regarding a stone that he brought with him this morning."  
"A stone? What did it look like? And, where did he find this stone?"  
"It was blue and about this size," the butcher said as he showed the length by his hands. "And, he said that he found it in the Spine."

Cassandra's heart stopped for a second. A blue stone the size of an egg found in the Spine?

"Think nothing more of this, Sloan. ''Tis probably cursed, for all you know," Cassandra said as she walked away.

'Is this the very egg that I dreamt about this morning? I mean, I was lucky to not have screamed as I did the other night,' Cassandra thought to herself as she walked to the hut.

_**Flashback: Earlier that morning...**_  
Cassandra was walking back to where she left Brom when she had bumped into Eragon.

"Oww," both of them said as they grasped their sore spots gently.  
"I'm really sorry about that, Eragon. I wasn't really-"  
"It's ok, Cassander. It's totally understandable," Eragon said as he helped Cassandra to her feet.  
"You're doing it again."  
"What?"  
"Calling me by a boy's name..."  
"I know..."  
"That's really annoying, after a while," Cassandra said as she started her way back to Brom.  
_But it works._ She heard Eragon's thought in her mind, causing her to smile to herself.

_**End Flashback**_


	4. Preparing for the Storm pt 2

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter 1 for proper disclaimer.**

While Brom remained in town, Cassandra was already back at the hut, readying the meal for the night. As she cooked, she felt a headache starting to form behind her right eye. Stopping on what she was doing, she placed a hand to her forehead. When she pulled her hand back, she noticed her mark glowing. Before she could question it, a vision came to her...

She could feel her half sister in her vision. She wouldn't have felt her unless she was in distress. She then saw Arya get surrounded by a wall of fire that Durza created. Arya then lifted the egg in the air with her hand as she muttered in the Ancient Language.  
_Get this to the Varden, Adriel._ Arya said to Adriel's mind as a blinding light engulfed the two.

Cassandra let out a GASP as her hand started to burn. She grunted as she tried to soothe the pain. Then, Brom's hand was grasping hers and was soothing it.

"What did you see?" he asked.  
"Arya...the egg...safe for now..."  
"Then, don't worry about it, then."  
"Durza was there, Brom...I got to do something," Cassandra said as she rushed from making food to go to where she had her things packed in case of an emergency.  
"Adriel...the egg's safe for now...check on it in the morning...for now, let's get dinner finished," Brom said as he stopped by grasping Cassandra's arms gently with his hands.

Cassandra could only nod her head as she went back to getting dinner going for the night.

**A/N: I know this is a very SHORT chapter. Forgive me, but bear with me on this one. This is just a continution of chapter 3. Chapter 4 will be posted when I've got it typed up.**


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